Made in China: Boeing, Airbus, Comac jets

As an aviation buff, I have been tracking the progress of the Comac C919 since before moving to Beijing early this year.

In the past few months, work has progressed steadily on the twin-engine, single-aisle aircraft, and its maker, State-owned Commercial Aircraft Corp of China, or Comac, is preparing for test flights.

With a capacity for up to 168 passengers, the C919 is the largest commercial aircraft developed by China. Some critics in the industry have speculated that the program is aimed at breaking the Boeing-Airbus duopoly in the lucrative narrow-body segment.